Sin and symphony. That's all a necromancer needs.
Octavia is a woman of many hats -- a maestro, an educator, a wanderer and an accomplished liar, and she wears all of them at once if need be. Masquerading as a music teacher, she travels the world on...
It wasn't often that Claud found himself in the company of necromancers, but of the handful he'd met, Quintus was the most peculiar. Half the time, Claud couldn't tell if the man was serious or joking, and he had an aloofness about him that scared most of the castle workers away. Perhaps he'd inherited it from the King. It was said, that being around someone for long enough made one adopt similar traits.
While King Jaredeth was friendly, it seemed forced, like he was trying to unlearn a bad habit. Not so much Quintus; the only friendliness that came from him was genuine. Which was why Claud couldn't fathom why Quintus would want to help him. He didn't seem too fond of the Divine City, or priests, to put it lightly. Perhaps Octavia had softened his heart.
"You do realize there could be a corpse waiting for you at the end of this journey?" Quintus poured out a generous serving of wine in the crystal goblet before sliding it in from of Claud. "Are you prepared for that?"
Was he? Claud grimaced at the blood red liquid. He'd grown so accustomed to finding nothing. It was comfortable, familiar, and it meant there was a chance his mother was still alive. Finding a corpse would bring over ten years of searching to a bitter, cold end. An end he wasn't sure he could face.
"No, I'm not," he finally said.
"Well at least you're honest." Quintus reached into his coat and pulled out a tiny silver bell before tossing it at Claud. "That bell is your ticket into the archives. Don't lose it."
A bell as a ticket? He'd thought these things were just a sidearm necromancers carried around, but it seemed they held more significance than he thought.
"At dawn, I have a group travelling to the Myanna Coast, but they'll be making a stop at Viperstone first. It's a five-day journey give or take. From the coast you'll board the Maiden's Pearl and ride it south to the city of Desta and that's as far as my power can take you." Quintus leaned back in his seat and swirled the wine in his goblet.
"All right. And how do I get to the archives from there?"
"The archives lie ten days inland, in a small town called Jabari, it's in a valley beneath the Summersong Mountains. How you'll get there is entirely your problem. Get creative, throw some money around, I don't know. But... once you get there, keep your head down and keep your mouth shut. Only speak when spoken to, only answer when called. And for the love of the gods don't tell them who you truly are."
Claud scowled. "But I'm not a priest any—"
"It does not matter if you are or you were. If they find out, they will kill you." Quintus set down his empty goblet and stood. "You have that bell and you have Octavia's blessing. So long as there are no mishaps, you should get to the archives just fine."
"Understood." Claud rubbed his eyes hoping all this information would stick. "Thank you, Quintus."
He gave a wave of his hand and headed for the exit.
"Why are you helping me?" Claud asked before Quintus could leave.
He stayed quiet for a long moment before he looked over his shoulder and said: "Octavia told me you were her only ally in Hedalda for a while. I look out for those who look out for mine, so consider this a debt repaid." He threw a wave over his shoulder. "You should get some rest, you'll need it."
As the door clicked shut, Claud looked down at the little bell, over the inscriptions on its surface. This was the closest he'd ever been to finding his mother. Or finding closure. He should be elated.
Then why was he shaking?
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Yes, Claud is getting his own story. His own romp through the world of sin and symphony. It's going to be short, a Novella I guess. I'm trying not to go over 30k words because I'll be writing it in tandem with a sci-fi story. And I need to get them both done before NaNoWriMo.
With this story, I also want to include some short bits that occur before and after Necromancy In D Minor. Maybe that chance encounter Octavia had with Prefect Marius? Maybe Jaredeth finally proposing to Quintus? Maybe something from our friends in Hedalda? Who knows. I don't have a solid plan yet.
When is it gonna be posted? I can't give an exact date. Definitely before November. I like to give myself some buffer in case life gets in the way of WP -- which it does, very often. Anyway, I hope you guys are as excited to read it as I am to write it.
Because this is the closest thing to a sequel I can come up with.
I hope you all enjoyed this little teaser. That's all for now.
